Sting
by foolishpride
Summary: AU. Roxas' best friend Namine goes missing, and he takes drastic measures to bring her home. But when he joins a notorious crime ring, the perils only increase for everyone involved. Chapter Three doesn't suck as much now! HUZZAH!
1. Prologue: Only Dancing

**Sting**

**A/N: Okay, my first drama, non-cracky, more-than-one-chapter, AU fic. I feel proud. **

**Summary: Roxas' best friend Naminé goes missing, and he takes drastic measures to bring her home safely. But when this includes joining a crime ring and befriending a mysterious gangster named Axel, the perils only increase for everyone involved. Rated T for swearing in the following chapters and a spot o' underage drinking. And other healthy, wholesome things.**

**Prologue – Only Dancing**

Lights spun in a dizzying dance across the room, mirroring the people on the floor. Arms, chests and lips pressed together in a frenetic waltz of teen passion. Linking limbs and orbiting each other, the dancers laughed merrily with their heads thrown back before colliding again, paying no mind to anyone else save for their partner. The shy wallflower sprouting in the corner had no place in it.

She watched meekly as her older sister, every bit as bold as her red locks hinted, danced with a cute boy, her boyfriend, supposedly. She tangled her fingers in his hair and dug her nails into his back, as though it was perfectly natural to behave so obscenely, moaning and gasping when they hadn't even bothered to take their clothes off yet.

_Don't be such a prude, Nam, _her sister had laughed that morning, mocking her when she squirmed uncomfortably at her sister's description of the popular dance routine sweeping the clubs. _It's only dancing. _

The wallflower blinked back embarrassed tears and smoothed down her pale skirt, feeling like the most virginal girl in the room and ashamed of it, when she ought to have been proud. She scanned the room, searching for the only boy she could count on to dance with her _properly._ She took a step forward, preparing to dive into the mayhem in search of that boy when someone almost threw her forward roughly.

"Excuse me."

She spun, hands at her hair, her lips, smoothing down her skirt yet again, as though it had rumpled with the effort of standing still. "Oh, uh, I'm sorry," she mewed, stepping back so she could meet the eyes of the much-taller man standing behind her. "I should've-"

"I am the one who must apologize," he interrupted, smiling and resting a gentle hand on her arm as he smoothly flipped his fuchsia hair out of his face, revealing a rather unremarkable visage and cold blue eyes. "At the same time, I won't lament seeing your lovely face, my dear…?" He arched his eyebrows as his hair fell back in his face, reminding the girl that she was obligated to respond.

"Na-Naminé," she stammered as he steered her slowly into the crowd. While her mysterious partner did not cajole her into the same routine everyone else was following, Naminé felt just as uncomfortable with his hands on her shoulder and at her waist in a formal waltz. She reluctantly draped both arms around his neck, having to stand on her tiptoes to do so. As they stood there, swaying gently and swirling slowly to avoid colliding with the other couples, he asked, "I'm assuming you have a second name, Naminé?"

Looking back on this night, she knew that this was where she went wrong.

"Glen. Naminé Glen."

The man's dark eyes widened, and his gentle hand grew steely against her skin. Naminé tried to subtly shrug him off, but his grip tightened to the brink of pain as he drew her into his chest, smothering her scream.

"It's an honor, Naminé," he drawled, a lethal smile staining his lips. "Shall we dance?"

**A/N: Eerie, no? I think you, the reader, are smart enough to figure out what just happened. And don't worry, no one gets seriously injured in the making of this story…except for the people who get wasted in the second chapter…**

**Hee.**


	2. Amber Alert

**A/N: And so I return for Chapter the First…technically speaking. For those who missed the summary, this is an AU fic about Roxas' best friend Naminé going missing, and he tries to save her by joining the gang responsible for her disappearance, but the perils only increase when he befriends a mysterious gangster named Axel. (This is where you put the flashing neon sign reading SLASH SLASH SLASH.) Anyway, this ought to hold you guys over for a week or so.**

**1. Amber Alert**

"_Hi, you've reached me, Naminé, but I'm not here right now. Just leave me a message after the beepy tone thing, okay? Bye_." Beeeeep.

"Hey, Naminé, it's me, Roxas, just calling because I haven't really seen you in a while, not since Sora's party last week…And, uh, listen, there's some stuff we need to talk about. Call me back? Bye."

Roxas' cheeks were burning by the time he hung up. There was no easy way to admit a crush on your best friend, was there? It would be simpler if Naminé just answered the phone, even if it was to reject him.

No, Roxas amended silently, rolling his eyes at his own stupidity; she wouldn't turn him down, she'd just blush and let him trample all over her. Because that was how Naminé was. Always shy, always afraid to speak up for herself, no matter who she was talking to. Roxas scowled and chewed on his lip, deeply troubled. He hoped that she wouldn't connect his anxious voice mails with the fact that he _conveniently _dropped by, because it was such a nice Saturday he felt like going for a skateboard ride around Twilight Town.

As Roxas passed Sunset Street, he sighed in defeat and gave into the urge to pull out his cell phone again and call her home phone. With one eye on the screen and one on the street, he flipped the phone open and tapped the '2' key. The speed-dial for Naminé's home phone, right behind her cell. Roxas cradled the phone between his ear and cupped his hands before him in insincere prayer. After five rings, a female voice, distorted beyond recognition by fatigue and misery, mumbled, "Hello?"

"Naminé?" Roxas asked eagerly, almost flipping the board over as he shuffled around anxiously.

"Oh, God." There was the sound of someone blowing their nose, and then the speaker returned to the phone sounding congested. "This is Mrs. Glen. Who is this?"

Roxas blinked at the unanticipated dashing of his hopes. "I'm a friend of Naminé's. Roxas."

"Oh, you." Roxas' frown deepened at the annoyance and despair in Mrs. Glen's voice.

"Naminé isn't here. I'm sorry."

Roxas, being he idiot that he was, hadn't made the connection yet, probably because the sheer idea of it was inconceivable. "Do you know where I could find her?"

"I don't know where she is. She's missing."

The board bucked beneath Roxas' feet when he skimmed carelessly over a crack. He pitched forward onto the sidewalk, his arms outstretched to break his fall. The air thumped out of his lungs noisily and left him floundering on the pavement, gagging on the blood in his mouth. Fingers scrabbled on the cement until he found his cell and rolled on his back. He squeezed his eyes shut against the sun and pain beating down on him, held the phone to his ear and panted, "What?"

"The last time I saw her was last Tuesday when she went to some boy's party. She didn't come home that night, or in the morning. My husband went to the station and filed a missing person's report the next day."

Roxas' heart beat wildly; he thought Naminé's mother could hear the thumping on her end of the conversation. A bicyclist passed, sparing only a glance in his direction before nearly colliding with his skateboard. The cyclist swerved, spitting a curse at Roxas as he pedaled down the street.

"You're a friend of hers…do you have any idea where she might be?"

"No, no. I – I'm so sorry, Mrs. Glen," Roxas panted. "Really, I am."

"Yes, well…" The phone beeped once, indicating the end of the conversation. Roxas sat up slowly, wincing in pain, and inspected the damage his phone had taken. The casing was battered, with a scratch on the screen, but for the most part it was intact. He couldn't say the same for himself, however. His palms were badly scraped and a bloody kneecap glistened through the threads of a ragged hole in his cargo pants. Roxas spat on the sidewalk and red droplets peppered the ground.

"Shit," he hissed, running a hand through his mussed before wiping his mouth. Roxas retrieved his skateboard, which had scooted two feet ahead of its own accord, and hopped on it. He pushed off shakily and set for home.

x

When he finally wandered home that afternoon, his mom was where he'd last seen her: in the front yard, trying to coax her garden back to life. The moment she noticed him trudging up the garden path with his skateboard tucked under his arm, she flipped her sweaty hair out of her face and asked, "Roxas? What did you do to yourself?"

He cast a lethargic glare in the direction of her withering rosebush and muttered, "Something much more interesting than gardening."

His mother pursed her lips and stood up with her hands on her hips, trying to look maternal and stern. It wasn't particularly easy for her, not when she hadn't even hit forty yet and her knees were crusted over with dirt. "I don't care for your attitude, young man."

Roxas shrugged. "Yeah, well, I don't care for you bugging me," he grumbled under his breath as he shuffled into the house. Roxas limped up the stairs and pushed the door open with his shoulder. He trudged across the room and flopped listlessly on his bed, exhausted yet unable to fall asleep. As he anticipated, the telltale clomping of his mom's most beloved pair of Crocs emanated from the hallway and continued to batter his head until they stopped next to his door. Roxas grudgingly cracked an eyelid and squinted in the direction of his door.

"Three…two…" he hissed before tossing his head the other way, facing the window. Right on cue, his mother entered the room, bringing a strong odor of sweat and earth with her.

"Is something wrong, sweetie?" she asked, resting her forearm against the doorway. Roxas mumbled something incoherent and twisted his head, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"Roxas?" She hesitantly approached his bed, leaning over him with a look of concern on her face. "What's going on?"

Roxas scowled and rolled on to his side, avoiding her gaze. "One of my friends, Naminé Glen. She's missing. Her parents called the police and everything."

Mrs. Cameron's face clouded over. "Petite blonde?" she questioned, holding her hand up at the proper height, which was about level with her shoulder. Roxas nodded glumly. "That's her." His mother's hands flew to her mouth.

"Oh my God, Elisa must be going out of her mind!"

Roxas' eyebrows almost disappeared under his bangs in disbelief. "Her mom? How do you think _Naminé_ feels about it?"

His mother's expression softened. She opened her mouth to comfort him-

_Everybody gonna dance tonight._

_Everybody gonna feel all right._

Roxas' mother stood up, surprised. She looked around, searching for the source of the music. Meanwhile, Roxas dug through his pockets and retrieved his badly battered cell phone, flashing blue and red unevenly. He glared at it for a minute, furious that his ringtone dare be so cheery.

"What happened to your phone?" his mom exclaimed. Roxas ignored her and put the phone to his ear.

_Everybody gonna dance-_

"Yeah?"

The voice of the person on the other end blasted through the earpiece as Roxas fumbled to turn down the volume.

"_Dude, Kairi just called me saying that Naminé's been missing for like a week!"_

Roxas managed to speak up and interrupt the caller's spastic speech. "I heard. How's she doing?"

"_Going mental. Can you meet me by the Sandlot?" _Roxas glanced up at his mother, silently asking for permission.

"Should you really go out with friends while that girl is missing?" she asked, much to her son's chagrin. Roxas wasn't exactly in the mood for an ethics lecture, but he _was _in the mood for anything to take his mind off Naminé. He shrugged halfheartedly and made for the door.

"_Roxas, man. Are you coming?"_

He glanced away and said curtly, "Yeah. I'll be there."

**A/N: End scene. Yeah, it's odd that he's going to meet the Sora almost immediately after he learns Naminé has gone missing. But it moves the plot along. So shut up. On better thought, don't shut up; write a lovely review consisting of constructive criticism and other things that make this little fangirl happy. The song is by Paul McCartney, btw. Just so you know that those lyrics didn't project themselves from my own crazed imagination. **


	3. An Impromptu Picnic

**A/N: We apologize for the delay; writer's block, AMV's, and summer assignment deadlines have been a bitch lately. We also apologize to readers disappointed by the lack of accurate details of inebriation in this chapter…I've never actually **_**been **_**drunk, so I'm sorta winging it here.**

**I don't own Kingdom Hearts or the phrase with the ****1**** next to it. **

**2. An Impromptu Picnic**

"Hey, Roxas!"

He recognized Sora's chirping and overtly cheery voice as it rant out from across the street. Roxas caught sight of Sora across the way, waving exuberantly with both hands. Like every time he went to hang with his friend of two years, he felt like the older one, even though Sora was eight months his senior. For some reason he couldn't place, Roxas found the native islander a bit too…peppy. Maybe it was something about people from the tropics.

Today Sora was looking unusually sober, but still lighthearted compared to Kairi, the weepy female clinging to his arm, and the impassive boy (old enough to be called a man – if you were willing to compromise) leaning against the wall, staring across the street. Kairi was Sora's girlfriend and Naminé's sister, a rising senior just like her boyfriend and Roxas. Riku Davies, the boy with outlandish silver hair (Roxas was positively certain he dyed it), was a year older than them and made a point of telling education, via his college-free lifestyle, to go fuck itself.

"Hey guys," Roxas greeted the posse as he approached from the other side of the lot. Kairi managed a wobbly smile; Riku simply arched an eyebrow and grunted to Sora without bothering to disguise his scorn, "You brought him here _why_?"

Sora shrugged and replied, "He's Naminé's friend too." Riku rolled his eyes behind Sora's back as the younger boy turned and flashed a wide grin at Roxas, who couldn't help but think that cheesy smiles weren't exactly appropriate in the current situation.

"So," he asked when the small talk teetered on the edge of awkward, "what'd you call me for?"

Sora held up a brown paper bag, its contents bulging heavily. "We're having a drink in honor of Naminé."

Roxas' first reaction was something along the lines of anger. "You drag me over here when I'm still reeling from the fact that _my_ friend-" he jabbed himself in the chest for emphasis-"is missing, something I just found out _this morning_. For what? A drink? The hell did you get it from, anyway?"

Sora glanced towards Riku, who raised and dropped a shoulder in an affectation of humbleness that clashed with the cavalier smirk on his face.

"And anyway, aren't you only supposed to do that at funerals?"

Riku snorted at this comment. "I'm pretty sure she won't be coming back."

"What?" Kairi asked, her bloodshot eyes widening at such a bold prediction. Riku ignored her and directly addressed Roxas.

"Well, how many people do you know that have come home after going missing for a week?"

Roxas shrugged and stared at his shoes. "None," he mumbled.

"Exactly."

x

According to Sora, the only good place to have an impromptu picnic such as this was in the woods. Fortunately (or perhaps not), there was a forest just on the outskirts of Twilight Town. By the time they arrived at the wall marking the perimeter of the town, the sky had begun to darken and Roxas was wishing he had a watch.

"You know, our parents will be pissed if they find out about this," he mumbled to nobody in particular as they ducked under branches and stepped over bushes. Kairi was tearing up again, Riku was brooding and Sora was far ahead of them, scouting out the ideal clearing.

As if on cue, said brunette leapt nimbly over a bush, only to clip his foot on the brambles. He lost balance and tumbled forward, skidding to a stop at Riku's feet.

"Look, it's a flying Sora," the silver-haired boy said dryly. Not disheartened in the least, Sora bounced up to his feet, trying very hard to pretend that the incident hadn't transpired. The red tinge in his cheeks was making this difficult.

"We have our spot," he announced broadly, gesturing with a sweeping motion to something beyond the shrubs. With pointed caution, he took a ginger step over the brambles and called over, "C'mon!"

Riku crossed over with little effort expanded; Kairi followed almost immediately, taking care to keep her skirt from hitching up. Roxas alone remained in the small clearing, arms crossed and frowning at the offending shrubbery.

"Damn it all," he grumbled, taking a step. His toe caught on the root of a tree and he crashed into the bush. Branches scraped his face, and he could have sworn that a leaf went up his nose. Cursing under his breath, Roxas managed to get to his feet, and waded through the rest of the brambles. When, after falling down three more times, he was out, brushing leaves off his clothes and combing branches out of his hair, Roxas glared at the three people watching him shaking with suppressed giggles.

"Don't say a damn word," he growled.

x

Roxas and Riku sat by themselves, the former with his knees curled into his chest, the latter draped across the roots of a large tree. Sora and Kairi kissed and cuddled for some time, stealing sips from each other's beer. Once everyone's bottles were half-empty, the drunken murmurs started with the only girl present.

"Painting," she whispered, rocking back and forth. Sora burped and lifted his head from her lap.

"What?"

"Painting," Kairi repeated, smilingly fondly as she caressed her bottle. "Naminé loved painting." Sora tugged the beer from her hands and took a deep swig, ducking as she swatted his head and snatched it back.

"She sometimes locked her room in herself for hours," the girl burbled, leaning dangerously forward. "Yelled at Mom when she tried to make her come out for dinner." She grinned lopsidedly and cackled.

"What is it?" Roxas asked cautiously. Something about people spontaneously bursting into giggles made him anxious. Kairi's grin widened as her eyes settled on Riku.

"Naminé painted Riku once, like, the first time Sora introduced them. It was actually pretty good, but he got _piiiiiiissed_…"

"Why?" Sora inquired. Roxas' ears perked up as well; the fact that Riku and Naminé knew each other personally was news to him.

Riku scowled and crossed his arms. "Need I remind you that in this _masterpiece _of your sister's I was wearing a bunch of grapes draped across my groin and a Roman wreath?"

Fortunately, Roxas swallowed a mouthful of his drink just before the grape reference, and so did not suffer an untimely death by drowning in alcohol. Sora almost went down that path, however, but instead spluttered beer on the ground, along with the contents of his stomach, judging by the smell.

"No fuckin' way!" he cried. "And I never heard about this?!"

"Personally, I feel bad for the grapes," Roxas snickered. His mirth decreased some as the odor of Sora's bile wafted over to where he was sitting. He gagged and began breathing through his mouth.

"Of course you didn't hear about it; I burned the damn thing." Riku stated flatly, as if that had been the obvious course of action. "Naminé needed better outlets for her creativity."

"Bull," Kairi retorted. "You just didn't like how your hair looked."

Sora tittered and drained the rest of his beer, thankfully holding it in.

x

One hour and several slurred rambles later, Kairi set a record as the first one to pass out.

"Well…" Roxas looked from her comatose form to the other boys. "What do we do now?"

Riku gazed intensely into the depths of the woods. "I don't know," he stated, making it clear that by _know, _he meant _care. _The contempt projected into three words was so astounding, even crickets paused in their chirping. Roxas fiddled with the hole in his pants. Kairi snored.

Timely as always, Sora hopped up and brushed himself off. "I gotta pee."

Riku followed suit and gestured to some far-off trees. "C'mon, Sora."

Sora called, "I'll be right there!" despite the fact that Riku was still only a foot away. He bent over Roxas, a bit too close than was altogether necessary, and panted (ensuring that Roxas' nose didn't escape his alcohol-sodden breath), "Watch Kairi, okay?" Without waiting for an answer, he straightened up and ran lopsidedly after Riku, arms flapping and flailing as he struggled to match his friend's pace.

Roxas jumped up and yelled to Sora's retreating and erratically-tilting back, "She's your girlfriend!" As anticipated, he was ignored. "Dammit," he growled, flopping back on the ground and punching the grass viciously. Stuck with his best friend's unconscious girlfriend in the middle of the forest, when for all he knew there could be insane chainsaw-wielding -

"You know…" Kairi began thoughtfully, making Roxas jump, "It kinda looks like a sugar cookie."

"Ahm…what?" he floundered, tugging at his bangs and brushing grass off his pants in an effort to calm his racing pulse.

The brunette rolled her eyes, and as she did, her entire head swiveled on her neck. "Dummy…" Kairi waved one arm in the general direction of the sky as she spoke. "The sky is like…one big blue sugar cookie, and all the little star things are like the little rainbow sprinkles."

"Sprinkles," Roxas said flatly.

"You know. The little thingies that go on the cookie, you put them on it…?" She raised her eyebrows as if perplexed by her own words. "They don't really taste like anything, I don't know why you put sprinkles on them anyway." Kairi dwelled on this revelation, allowing silence to fall on the forest unmolested by slurred voices.

Lured into thought by background noises of wind rustling through leaves and Kairi's heavy breath, Roxas ran the day's events through his mind. In truth, he thought he'd dealt with the shock of losing Naminé pretty well. He'd yet to have an emotional meltdown, if you didn't count the sulking in his room for about five minutes. But then again, had he really been given a chance to grieve?

"Do you miss her?"

Roxas glanced at Kairi, who was watching him with her head lifted slightly above the grass.

"Of course I do. She's my best friend."

Kairi nodded, as if this answer satisfied her. As she settled back on the ground, Roxas continued, "What I don't understand is…why would anyone _do_ that? It just…makes no sense." He sat up, expecting an answer or at least agreement from Kairi, but hearing none.

"…Kairi?"

He got on his hands and knees in order to better see Kairi, whose head was buried in her arms. Roxas flinched. If there was anything that worried him more than spontaneous giggling, it was spontaneous crying.

"Are you...okay?"

Kairi lifted her head, and Roxas was quite surprised to see that her face was completely dry.

"Don't tell Sora. Or Riku. Anyone."

"Kairi, what-"

"Shut up and listen," Kairi hissed, cutting him off. She glanced around the clearing and grabbed Roxas by the collar, pulling him towards her. Murky blue eyes searched his as she panted, "I think I know who kidnapped Naminé."

**A/N: I am glad to be done with that. -headdesk- I need INSPIRATION, DAMMIT!!**

**Anyway.**

**In completely unrelated news, I have yet to get any messages regarding the fate of 'Carnival.' (See my profile, under the **_**Stories **_**section) Please, please, give me a yay or a nay, delete or update? That's what readers are for, eh?**


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